Editorial: Bruno should get back to work

Sunday

Oct 28, 2007 at 12:01 AMOct 28, 2007 at 4:32 AM

Give it a rest, Joe. That’s our message to everyone’s favorite political peacock, state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (though we highly doubt he’ll listen, no matter how many times editorial boards across the state write it.)

Give it a rest, Joe.

That’s our message to everyone’s favorite political peacock, state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (though we highly doubt he’ll listen, no matter how many times editorial boards across the state write it.)

We’ve seen enough strutting and disingenuous victimization on the issue of “political espionage” by Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s staff.

Yes, Spitzer’s advisers crossed the line in asking the State Police to compile records of Bruno’s travel. The matter has been investigated by multiple agencies, including Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, with no one having found criminal wrongdoing. Voters have made up their minds on the issue and resoundingly want lawmakers to get back to business.

Still, Bruno and Senate Republicans insist on dragging out the feud in an attempt to render Spitzer politically impotent. The latest news has Bruno’s GOP allies threatening to press misdemeanor charges if Spitzer’s aides don’t testify in the Senate’s kangaroo court.

Bruno is seeking to exact public lashings in the hope that Spitzer’s white knight image will be muddied.

That strategy hasn’t exactly worked. Spitzer still receives favorable ratings from a majority of New Yorkers. The only thing being accomplished at this point is avoiding tackling any real issues in the Legislature. With items like reforming laws governing the employment of municipal union workers and revamping a broken education system before lawmakers, that so much time and energy has gone into this intensely political smear campaign is infuriating.

It’s maddening that a sanctimonious politician like Bruno can hold up work on so many important issues — and equally maddening that Spitzer allowed his staff to give Bruno the ammunition he needed to do it.

There was a glimmer of hope for those wishing to see the reforms Spitzer pledged to undertake actually become reality. That hope is fading with each passing day of politics as usual in Albany.

Spitzer may think of himself as a “steamroller,” but these days it seems like not even his force can overcome this state’s “Great Wall” of partisanship and greed.